How to Understand a Hiccup
by iLuvNightFuries
Summary: Post HTTYD 1 One shots - As the teens get to know Hiccup better, they learn about many of his unusual quirks, most of them quite surprising to the group. They also see just how strong the bond between Hiccup and Toothless truly is. Open to requests.
1. Upside Down Bonding

**AN: This is my first fanfic ever! I hope you enjoy. :)**

How to Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 1: Upside Down Bonding

The bright sun loomed overhead, lazily inching away from the horizon. Chatter could be heard amongst humans and dragons alike as they made their way to the Dragon Arena for the latest lesson. Upon entering the former Kill Ring, the group of teens was surprised. The usual noises of a content Night Fury and its rider were absent. Several minutes ticked by, yet the crippled pair were nowhere to be found. No one dared to break the awkward silence that had fallen upon the normally lively group. No one, that is, but Snotlout, whose harsh words sliced through the silence like a sword.

"Where has Useless gone off too? Did he ditch us to play with his useless dragon? Honestly, I've never met a more pathetic pair than the two of them – a dragon that can't fly and a Viking that can't do… anything."

Astrid punched him and was just about to start yelling at him when she heard a familiar noise. The sound of a dragon growling met the ears of everyone in attendance, but the sound didn't belong to any of their reptilian counterparts. No, this growl was unmistakably from a Night Fury.

Looking around for the source of the noise, the gang found the dragon to being hanging upside down from a chain atop the Dragon Arena. Toothless (who had just woken up from a nap) gave a most menacing glare to Snotlout with his acidic eyes before nudging something underneath his wings.

"Toothless?" An unforgettable nasally voice could be heard, yet the speaker could not be seen. "Is it almost time for dragon training?"

"Hiccup?" Astrid called out, wondering where the small rider was. Her unspoken question was answered as the Night Fury unfurled his wings, revealing the location of Hiccup to be in his grasp. Upside down.

"Hold on." Hiccup rubbed the drowsiness out of his eyes before grabbing part of the saddle and swinging around to the back side of Toothless. The Night Fury jumped down to the ground and the young Viking hopped off, absentmindedly scratching the dragon's scaly hide.

The other teens gaped at him, completely shocked.

"Hiccup… How did you do that?" Fishlegs snapped out of his stupor and spoke up. "It shouldn't be possible to remain unaffected from hanging upside down. I mean, blood rushes to the head when humans are inverted, and it can cause stiffness, strokes, or even death from an excess amount of blood in your-"

"Dude," Tuffnut said, preventing Fishlegs from rambling, "The longest I've ever lasted upside down is like two minutes, but you were _sleeping_ upside down! How do you do it?"

Snotlout snickered, "Maybe he was dropped on his head as a baby." He received another punch from Astrid before she spoke up.

"Seriously Hiccup, how is that possible?"

"Well…" He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, not sure why it was such a big deal. "Night Furies sleep upside down quite often. Once I was sleeping under Toothless's wings, and when I woke up, he was hanging on to me while sleeping like a bat. It's never really bothered me, so I just do it whenever he feels like being upside down."

The teens looked at him like he had lost his mind.

"You know, Hiccup, you could just sleep in your bed," Fishlegs said, voicing everyone's thoughts. It was Hiccup's turn to stare at the group like they were insane.

He laughed, "Are you kidding? I haven't slept in my bed since I lost my leg! Toothless is much more comfortable, and he wouldn't like it if I slept on my bed away from him. Right bud?" Toothless warbled in agreement, tucking his head under Hiccup's arm for more pampering.

"Hiccup, shouldn't we start training?" Astrid asked him, still wary of what was going on inside his head.

"Oh! You're right. I was thinking that today we could spend some time bonding with our dragons…"

"Again?" Snotlout complained, groaning along with others.

"You didn't let me finish. I was thinking we'd do it in the place that Toothless and I first met.

Astrid gasped, "You're not talking about the Cove are you? I thought you weren't going to show anyone." Whispers broke out amongst the group, wondering what this "Cove" was and why they didn't know about it.

"I figured now was a good time to share it with others. Let's get going." Toothless tossed Hiccup onto his back, ready to go.

-Line Break-

After a fairly quiet flight, the riders reached the Cove. The serene sounds of nature were interrupted by the abrupt whooshing of wings as the dragons landed on the soft earth. Everyone dismounted, and all stopped to admire the scenery. Even Astrid, for she had only been there once, and she was more focused on the unholy Night Fury then.

Hiccup let out a content sigh and spoke, "Welcome to the place where Toothless and I became best friends." Toothless crooned happily and licked Hiccup's cheek.

"Now what do we do?" Snotlout asked Hiccup.

"Just… spend some time with your dragons, relax, play with them, anything like that."

After a few moments of consideration, everyone went and found things to do with their dragons. Astrid and Stormfly played fetch, while the twins played an intense game of hide and seek with Barf and Belch. Fishlegs decided to relax with Meatlug and admire the scenery, and Hookfang convinced Snotlout to fly around inside the Cove. All was well for the time being.

Toothless, after noticing the fun everyone else was having, nudged Hiccup, wanting to do something. The teen laughed and spoke, "What do you want to do first, bud? Maybe play a game of tag, or do some drawing?"

The Night Fury barked happily and ran off, signaling that his choice was to play tag. Hiccup finally felt like he could relax and be himself, without having to worry about anything else. He smiled and quickly chased after Toothless, well, as fast as one could with a prosthetic leg.

-Line Break-

The sun slowly set across the horizon, and the orange hues signified that dinnertime was approaching. One by one, the teens stopped what they were doing and prepared to leave. All of them, that is, but Hiccup. He and Toothless were still playing with each other. The others watched them, surprised at how relaxed they were when it was just the two of them.

Hiccup wrapped his arms around Toothless's neck, trying to get push him, "You feeling it yet? Picking up on all my heartfelt remorse?"

The dragon's ears flattened, and he didn't budge. After a few failed attempts, Hiccup felt the ground disappear from beneath him as the Night Fury stood on his hind legs. He waddled over to the lake, letting Hiccup dangle over the water's edge. "C'mon. You wouldn't hurt a one-legged- Ah!" Hiccup noticed the water beneath him and tightly clung onto Toothless. "You're right! You win! You win."

The other riders laughed along with Toothless and watched as the dragon fell backwards, letting Hiccup land on the ground before pinning him down. "Oh he's down, and it's ugly."

The inseparable duo pretended to fight each other. "Dragons and Vikings, enemies again, locked in combat to the bitter-" Hiccup's sentence was cut off by a loud groan as Toothless's head flattened him to the ground.

Another groan followed it as Toothless began to lick Hiccup. He just barely escaped the dragon's grasp, somersaulting backwards to free himself. "You know that doesn't wash out!" Hiccup grabbed some of the slobber and flicked it back in Toothless's face. He finally noticed the laughter coming from everyone else in the Cove, and blushed, feeling pretty embarrassed that they witnessed Toothless effortlessly pin him down and give him a bath.

The duo made their way over to everyone else, with Toothless looking smug, and Hiccup trying to act like that didn't just happen. Everyone stared at the strange pair, before they shrugged it off as "something Hiccup would do." The group of dragons took off, leaving the peaceful sanctuary behind and heading back to the village, having enjoyed the wonderful day.


	2. Left-Handed Uselessness

**AN: Just to let you all know, I am in school right now, so my updating schedule will be pretty irregular. I will try to post as much as I can though!**

How to Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 2: Left-Handed Uselessness

It was a gloomy day on Berk, and to be honest, when wasn't it? Fog blanketed the sky, making visibility low for riders and dragons alike, practically confining them to the ground. Hiccup was in the process of following other Vikings to the Meade Hall for some lunch, when his prosthetic snagged on an unearthed tree root and sent him tumbling. He huffed, frustrated with the stupid hunk of metal, and got back up.

As soon as he stood up however, the sound of laughter met his ears. Snotlout just so happened to be behind Hiccup on his trek to the Hall, and he witnessed the spectacle that had occurred. He roughly pushed past the small teen, nearly sending him sprawling again. "Even after defeating a giant dragon you're still as useless as ever."

Hiccup stared at the ground beneath his feet, _foot_ , as he had to constantly remind himself. Several thoughts ran through his head, and none of them were very pleasant. He once thought that killing a dragon would help get people to treat him better. Since that didn't work at all, he thought maybe after saving them, they'd change. Most of them did. One in particular that still tormented him happened to be his own cousin, Snotlout.

 **-Line Break-**

"Ow!" 10-year-old Hiccup cried out as Snotlout pushed him into the mud. He and the twins laughed as the fishbone of a child tried to get back up, only to slip and fall back down.

"Hiccup is so clumsy, he's practically useless!" Ruffnut said between fits of laughter.

The female twin's comment gave Snotlout an idea. "That should be his title, Ruff. Hiccup the Useless!"

Just as Hiccup managed to get back up, a fist met his face, causing him to once again lose his footing. His nose tingled, and after touching the tender area, Hiccup's fingers were covered in blood. His eyes welled with tears as he watched the three kids walk away.

"See you later, _Useless._ " Tuffnut said as they left.

"I'm not useless," Hiccup whispered to himself. "One day I'm going to kill a Night Fury, then we'll see whose laughing _._ "

 **-Line Break-**

It was Astrid's turn to teach on that gloomy day in the northern Archipelago. So of course, it was combat training. She shoved a large axe in Hiccup's right hand, which he promptly dropped. Snickers from his one and only cousin could be heard as the chief's son tried to pick it back up.

"Do you need some help with that, Useless?" Snotlout sauntered on over to his cousin and hoisted the axe up onto Hiccup's shoulder and gave him a push, causing him to fall backwards and land on the rock hard arena floor. Hiccup tried to bite back a cry of pain, but it was to no avail. Laughter echoed through his ears, and the small teen fought the sudden onslaught of tears. His only comfort at the moment was hearing the growls and snarls coming from his best friend from the other side of the ring.

"Aww. Does little Hiccup want to go cry to his mommy? Oh, that's right! He doesn't even have one. Maybe he'll go cry to his crippled dragon that _he_ injured." Snotlout laughed at the little Viking's misfortune, not realizing that he had struck a nerve.

Hiccup stood up and trudged over to Snotlout, and the only noises that could be heard were the laughter from one Viking, and the clanking of a metal foot from the other. Once Hiccup was directly in front of Snotlout, he did something that no one was expecting. Out of nowhere, his left hand shot out and punched Snotlout in the face. It was a bit weak, but the shock of Hiccup punching Snotlout alone gave the desired effect.

His cousin staggered back, holding his nose, "What in Hel's name was that for?"

"I am sick and tired of you belittling me! I handled you making fun of me, but talking about my deceased mother and my best friend like that is unacceptable! I have had it with you, Snotlout. I tried and tried to be nice to you, hoping you would one day return the behavior. I am fed up with your stupid comments about me being useless."

Everyone was surprised at Hiccup's outburst, yet Snotlout seemed to brush it off. "It's not like I'm wrong about calling you Useless, I mean, what _can_ you do? Yes, you did tame a Night Fury and defeat the Red Death, but in normal Viking standards? You're weak."

"That's where your wrong, _Snotlout._ " Hiccup spat out his cousin's name. "I may not be able to lift an axe or swing a hammer, but give me my sword or bow and I'll do just fine. I've made more weapons than you can count, and my friend Camicazi and I escaped from a Roman prison, taking down a large number of their soldiers on our way out. I may not look like it, but I can fend for myself!" Hiccup took a deep breath, trying to calm down.

Everyone was shocked. While they didn't want to admit it, they all actually believed that Hiccup was pretty weak. They had no idea that he had battled _Romans_ for Thor's sake.

Snotlout panicked, trying to make a comeback on the spot. "Oh yeah? Prove it."

"Fine," Hiccup stood tall and looked Snotlout straight in the eye. "Meet back here in one hour if you're not too much of a coward to duel." With that final remark, Hiccup strode out of the arena, Toothless right behind him.

Once the duo had left, everyone turned to Snotlout, glaring at him for mistreating Hiccup.

"What did I do?"

 **-Line Break-**

One hour had passed, painfully slow for some, but instantaneously for others. News about a fight between Snotlout and Hiccup had spread throughout the village like wildfire, (no thanks to the twins) and many of the villagers stood outside of the ring, excited for the upcoming match. Within the crowd were the two fathers, Stoick and Spitelout, and Hiccup's mentor, Gobber.

"Yer boy better be careful, Stoick, Snotlout is a tough warrior," Spitelout stated a bit smugly.

Gobber was the one to respond, "Oh, ye haven't seen nothin' yet. Hiccup may look week, but he's stronger than most realize. Honestly, I've seen him in action once before."

Inside the ring were all of the teens, minus Hiccup that is, and their respective dragons. On one side of the ring, Snotlout could be seen with his trusty falchion*, and a basic bow made of ash wood. He paced back and forth with anticipation, only looking up when he heard his opponent.

Clanking metal resounded as Hiccup entered the ring. A beautifully carved bow could be seen on his back, and an oddly shaped scabbard had been strapped to his waist. To everyone watching, he appeared calm and collected, but inside it was a completely different story.

To be honest, Hiccup was worried. Sure he knew he could fight, but he had never battled Snotlout before. He had a plan, but wasn't confident in its success.

"May the gods be with me," he muttered under his breath.

 **-Line Break-**

Astrid positioned several targets where she wanted them, before explaining the rules of the archery contest. "You each have three targets. After shooting each of them, whoever has the best score wins!"

Snotlout pushed Hiccup aside as he strode up to his position. "Why don't you just give up? There's no way you can win." To be honest, he hadn't practiced with a bow much, but felt confident in his abilities.

After clumsily stringing his bow, Snotlout took a deep breath. His first shot landed just outside the bullseye, worth 9 points. He shot twice more, each arrow making a solid "thunk" as it landed in its target. His final score ended up being 28, for he managed to get a bullseye on his last shot.

The crowd was impressed, but none cheered louder than Spitelout, "That's ma boy!"

Snotlout puffed his chest out, loving the attention and absolutely sure he would win. He turned to Hiccup, grinning, and said, "Try and beat that, _Useless._ "

Hiccup gave him a tight-lipped smile before taking his position in front of the first target. He grabbed his hand-made, intricately carved longbow and an arrow from his leather quiver. All was silent as the chief's son nocked the arrow and drew the string, his body relaxed and his eye trained on the target.

He exhaled and let the arrow loose. It landed directly in the center with a loud thunk. Everyone watched with disbelief as Hiccup quickly reloaded twice more. His aim was true with each and every arrow. His score was a perfect 30, a score that not only shocked Snotlout or the villagers, but his father as well. Stoick could not believe his eyes, but suddenly cheered louder than anyone could have ever imagined. That was his wife's son, alright. She couldn't use heavy weapons, but was the sharpest shooter he'd ever laid eyes on.

The sound of everyone cheering met Hiccup's ears, and for once in his life he felt _useful._ Even his father cheered for him. A small grin adorned the Viking's face, but it quickly faded as he turned around to see Snotlout glaring at him.

"It's not like Vikings even use bows. I've trained with a sword for my whole life, and I doubt you can defeat the great Snotlout."

 **-Line Break-**

Vikings of all ages had crammed themselves around the ring. While watching the future warriors shoot was fun, they found duels to be much more entertaining.

The teenagers that weren't participating in the fight backed up to one side so that Hiccup and Snotlout could have all the room they needed. Snotlout drew his heavy falchion, ready to crush Hiccup. What surprised him though, was Hiccup's choice of weapon. He drew a thin, curved sword, and held it in his right hand.

"Since when are swords curved, Useless? Can you even cut anything with that?" He taunted Hiccup, trying to hide the fact that he was a bit nervous after seeing the strange contraption.

Hiccup laughed, "Since when have you known what the word 'curved' means? And it's called a sabre** by the way." He, too, was nervous, but knew that if he had ever trained for anything, it was to prove to Snotlout that he was _not_ useless.

The two Vikings circled each other, waiting for the match to begin. The clang of a hammer hitting metal signified the beginning, and Snotlout charged right at Hiccup, wanting to end it quickly.

Hiccup knew that the falchion, combined with Snotlout's weight, would be much too heavy to block. At the last second, he parried the blow and sidestepped, slipping out of Snotlout's reach. The arrogant Viking growled, angry that he missed.

On and on they went. Snotlout attacked. Hiccup defended. Snotlout finally realized that charging his cousin wouldn't work and he slowed down, timing each of his attacks. He grinned when Hiccup nearly failed to dodge a few blows. To him, it appeared that the runt was losing, and his sword skills were not all that great.

Hiccup finally spoke after what felt like hours of battling, "Do you want to know a secret, Snotlout?

"What?" He asked, pausing for a moment.

A deafening silence was present as everyone viewed the duel in anticipation. Hiccup gave Snotlout his traditional, lopsided smirk.

"I'm not right-handed."

 **-Line Break-**

Instantly, Hiccup's demeanor changed. After tossing the sabre to his other hand, he sprung into action. He charged toward his opponent, completely surprising him by attacking instead of defending. All Snotlout could do was block as he was pounded with precise, calculated attacks by his fishbone of a cousin.

Their blades clashed, sending several sparks flying. Snotlout pushed as hard as he could, knowing he had the upper hand when it came to strength. Hiccup caught him off guard by quickly pulling away, causing the larger teen's momentum to send him stumbling forward. Hiccup grinned and allowed Snotlout to get up before quickly attacking again. The small Viking swung his sword at shoulder level. Snotlout backed up, but was determined to win.

The fight continued, neither side letting up. Battling with a prosthetic was proving to be a new challenge for Hiccup. Every so often maneuvers that were normally easy for him caused the teen to slip.

All of a sudden, a spark lighted in Hiccup's eyes as he discovered an opening. Hiccup thrusted toward Snotlout's chest, knowing it would be blocked. He used the slight curve of the blade to his advantage, however, and slid his sword down towards the hilt of Snotlout's. With the flick of a wrist, Hiccup disarmed his cousin. The only noise that could be heard was the falchion clattering on the ground.

Everyone stared in disbelief. Hiccup "the Useless" had just beaten Snotlout. Astrid was the one to break the silence. She strode over to Hiccup and punched him in the shoulder.

"I knew you could do it," she said, triggering the response of others. A sudden rush of noise met Hiccup's ears as the Berkians wildly cheered for him. Hiccup looked over to Snotlout, who still had not moved his confused gaze from the sword lying on the ground. _His_ sword.

The lesson Snotlout, and a large number of others, learned was to _never_ underestimate a Hiccup, no matter how Useless he appeared to be.

 *** A falchion is a sword with the weight and power of an axe. Even though it's not a traditional Viking sword, I felt like it was the perfect fit for Snotlout.**

 **** A sabre is a slightly curved, one-edged sword. I figured that since Hiccup is…Hiccup to state it in the least, he probably would have made himself a sword different than one a Viking would normally use.**

 **AN: Yes, I know. I may have borrowed a few lines from the Princess Bride's script, but I couldn't resist. ;) If you have any ideas, let me know. I might not be able to write about all of them, but I will definitely take them all into consideration.**


	3. The (Almost) Forgotten Birthday

**AN: I have this week off of school, so I've been able to write a lot. Also, I've been on a roll, developing ideas faster than I normally do. Don't expect me to keep up this daily post schedule though. Anyways, I hope you all enjoy! :)**

How to Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 3: The (Almost) Forgotten Birthday

For once, it was a sunny day on Berk, which was quite unusual. It was a strange day anyways, for February 29th only occurred every four years. Not many people knew this, but Hiccup was actually born on this odd day 16 years ago.

Said Viking woke up to dragon slobber. Toothless gave him a gummy grin before setting him on the ground and hopping around the room happily. Hiccup laughed at the Night Fury's antics, even though the dragon knocked over a few of Hiccup's belongings.

"Why are you so excited?" Toothless stopped and stared at Hiccup. Did his little Viking forget what day it was? Figuring that he was still a little tired, Toothless just gave him another smile.

"Let's head down to my workshop, bud. I've got something to finish up for you." The duo exited the house and made their way to the forge. Along the way, several terrors ran up to Toothless and started talking to him. He nodded his head in reply and then nudged Hiccup. The dragons' eyes widened and they all rushed over to Hiccup, not only loving the attention he gave them, but wanting to wish him a happy birthday.

Hiccup was a bit confused, but pampered them all anyways. After Toothless grumbled at them, they all chirped at the inseparable pair before flying away happily.

"What was that all about?" Toothless just smiled in reply, finally realizing that Hiccup forgot what today was. The Night Fury swore to himself that Hiccup would somehow remember by the end of the day.

 **-Line Break-**

Hiccup entered the forge. He went over to his work space and found a package sitting on his desk. Confused, he carried out to Gobber.

"What's this?" he asked.

Gobber laughed, "It's a present! Don't tell me you've forgotten what today is."

"What do you mean? It's February 29th… My birthday is today? I totally forgot!"

"Well go on, open it." Gobber said, gesturing to the present.

Hiccup opened the box to find a heap of black leather that he had always wanted to work with, and a few nuggets of gold he could use to embellish a few of his designs.

"It took a lot for me to get all those, so don't waste 'em."

Hiccup wrapped his arms around his mentor, "Thank you! There are so many things I could do with all these…" The young inventor started mumbling a bunch of nonsense as he ran back to his workroom with the box to write down all of his crazy ideas.

Gobber chuckled, "That's the Hiccup I know. He hasn't changed a bit."

 **-Line Break-**

Hiccup walked out of the forge with a present for Toothless. He had spent the past few days developing it for the dragon, but still wasn't quite sure when he'd use it.

"Hey, Toothless. I've got something for you." Toothless bounded over to him and grinned, licking his best friend. A torch suddenly caught on fire in Hiccup's head. "Wait a minute. Were you trying to tell me 'Happy Birthday' earlier?"

Toothless jumped up and down and nodded his head, glad that his rider finally understood. Hiccup smiled, glad that today was actually proving to be a nice day. It was much better than all of his previous birthdays already. He held out an odd metal contraption and showed it to Toothless. "If I attach this to your tail, whenever I pull the lever, you can glide without my help! I don't really know how useful it will be, but it should give you some stability."

Toothless gave him the largest gummy grin yet, proving that his name was a perfect fit. After attaching the device to the dragon's prosthetic, Hiccup hopped on his back. Toothless crooned in excitement and immediately shot into the air.

The birthday boy laughed as they flew up and away from Berk. In the sky, he felt completely relaxed and free. After pulling of several risky maneuvers, (not forgetting the classic freefall) Toothless slowed down and glided at a relaxing pace.

Hiccup rubbed the dragon's head, "You ready to try this?" Toothless barked happily and Hiccup pulled a lever, locking the fake tail in place. He leaned back in the saddle, relaxing as Toothless flew practically on his own. Constant noises of excitement and joy could be heard from the Night Fury.

While laying back and staring at the clouds, Hiccup realized something. Maybe he could find a way to fly on his own too! As he sat back up, he voiced his opinion to Toothless.

"Do you think it's possible, bud? The two of use, flying side by side for once, instead of relying on each other?" Toothless grumbled questioningly. He'd never seen a human by itself before.

"I know, I probably sound crazy. But it could work!" Hiccup released the lever controlling Toothless's tailfin, and the two returned to their normal flying shenanigans.

 **-Line Break-**

The other Berkian teenagers waited impatiently in the Dragon Arena. Hiccup hadn't shown up for the lesson that was supposed to start at least fifteen minutes ago. Hearing the familiar screech of a Night Fury, the group looked up to see the duo fly into the arena.

"I'm so sorry, guys! I completely lost track of time." Hiccup said as he dismounted. Everyone watched in confusion as all of their dragons ran over to Toothless, chattering to him excitedly. He gave them all a smile and a few words in Dragonese before nudging Hiccup. Again, the dragons' eyes widened as they realized how similar Hiccup and Toothless were.

The teens watched their dragons give Hiccup more attention than they had ever received, still wondering what in Thor's name was going on. He whispered in each of their ears, thanking them all and asking them to go back to their respective riders.

"What was that all about? I mean I know Hiccup has a gift with dragons, but they all stopped what they were doing and ran to him," Astrid said aloud, voicing something along the lines of what everyone else had been thinking.

"It's not a big deal guys. Let's just get started with the lesson," Hiccup sighed, knowing that Gobber would be the only human to realize his birthday. Hel, even Hiccup couldn't remember it was his birthday at first. He didn't mind that much, but when celebrating Astrid's 15th birthday with everyone last summer, he learned what a birthday was really like. After that, Hiccup had wished that his birthday would be better, but then felt bad for doing so. The small Viking thought that he was being too selfish.

 **-Line Break-**

When dragon training was over, Hiccup was confronted by Astrid, "What's up with you today? You've been acting pretty weird."

Snotlout added, "Weirder than usual." He snickered, and then groaned as Astrid punched him.

"Oh, it's nothing. Today is just a pretty cool day," Hiccup attempted to subtly hint at it being his birthday.

Fishlegs responded, "That's right!" Hiccup looked over to him, surprised that he knew what Hiccup was talking about. "It's Leap Day! It only happens once every four years."

Hiccup frowned and spoke quietly, "Yeah, that's it."

"Man, I'd hate to have a birthday on this day. I'd only be like four years old," Ruffnut said.

"Imagine having to wait four years to grow older and get presents and stuff. Someone would have to have the worst luck to be born today," Snotlout responded, laughing.

"Yeah, it would be pretty weird," Astrid agreed.

Everyone laughed at the idea of having such an odd birthday. All but the birthday boy himself, who looked down and whispered, "I think I'll just go." Blinking back tears, he hopped on Toothless and they silently departed. No one knew when they left, nor did they see Stormfly follow the duo.

 **-Line Break-**

The best friends landed in the cove. Toothless let Hiccup off of his back, before licking his rider to try and comfort him.

"I'm fine, Toothless," Hiccup wasn't. He knew that his birthday wasn't going to be remembered again, but didn't expect people his friends to make fun of the day. While they didn't know it was Hiccup's birthday, it still made him feel pretty bad.

Brushing his emotions aside, Hiccup dropped the materials he had grabbed from the forge on his way to the sanctuary. He had a lot of leather, including the dyed pieces Gobber had given him earlier, as well as scraps of metal and a few tools to work with. The challenge was to figure out how he could fly with Toothless.

As soon as Hiccup started jotting down ideas however, a familiar squawk resounded in the cove as Stormfly landed. She trotted up to Toothless, and Hiccup realized that Astrid was not with her. He watched as the Nadder gave his best friend a few fish as a present.

"Wait a minute," The Viking said, figuring out what was going on. "Is it your birthday too, bud?" Toothless nodded his head.

Hiccup smiled and hugged his companion, feeling even closer to the dragon. Hiccup thought it would be even cooler if they were the same age as well, but he highly doubted it.

 **-Line Break-**

Back in the arena, Stormfly had returned to her rider's side. She nudged Astrid, who looked around, realizing Hiccup was gone.

"Guys," she said, "when did Hiccup leave?"

"Who knows?" Snotlout answered, "And who cares?" He and the twins laughed.

"I'm serious. He just disappeared."

"Maybe he had to do some work in the forge," Fishlegs suggested.

The teens made their way to the forge, finding Gobber inside.

"If you're lookin' for Hiccup, he's not here. He came in a few minutes ago to grab some supplies before leaving. I think he was feelin' a bit sad." The blacksmith told them while fixing someone's axe.

Astrid asked him, "Do you know why he was sad?"

"Nah. I mean, every year he ends up feeling pretty miserable on this day. I always try to cheer him up, but it doesn't seem to do much. His father isn't one to really celebrate, especially considering that his wife was taken not so long after that day. Hiccup still blames himself for what happened, even though he can't remember it."

"What?" Now all of the teens were confused.

"It's the lad's birthday today. His real birthday."

Astrid was mortified. She, along with the others, had made fun of him without even realizing it. "Oh gods. We have to make it up to him! Gobber, what do you think we should do?"

"Well, if you're talkin' about gettin' him a present, I can't help him. I usually just get him rare materials to work with," he paused. "But, you could check for ideas in his workroom. Don't tell him I ever let you kids back there. I've only been in there a few times, and he normally shoos me out right away."

Gobber led them to the small workroom hidden in the back of the forge. What was inside shocked them all. Not one inch of a wall could be seen. Papers of all different sizes and with all different shapes covered the walls, the desk. In one corner of the room, several three-dimensional prototypes sat, some of them assembled, others in pieces.

"Remember," The blacksmith whispered, "none of us were ever here."

He left them to their own devices in the private room. _Hiccup's_ private room. Not one of them knew he had so many ideas, nor did they know he could create things so well.

"How haven't we noticed these things, guys? I feel so horrible. It's like we don't even pay attention to him," Astrid finally broke the silence.

"It's not like anyone's payed attention to Useless," Snotlout declared, actually being right for once.

Astrid felt like her heart was going to break, "I can't believe we were never nice to Hiccup. _I_ was never nice to him. He has all of the great ideas that could really help the village, and aside from destroying things in the raids, what did he ever do wrong? We don't deserve his friendship, we never have! Yet Hiccup forgave every single person in the village without batting an eye. I feel so ashamed. We _have_ to make it up to him."

"Well, it is his birthday, isn't it?" Tuffnut mentioned.

 **-Line Break-**

Hiccup was ready to crumble. It started pouring while he was out with Toothless, and he while he saved the materials for his project, most of his new sketches were practically ruined. Then, on their way back to the village, the new addition to the Night Fury's tail locked up, causing him to go flying out of control. After landing in a mound of mud, the two had to make the trek back home in the dark. Hiccup didn't even bother wiping away the tears as he made it home.

He walked upstairs to his room, dropping the materials on his unused bed. He spread the sketches on the floor, hoping that when they dried, a few would be salvageable. Hiccup didn't bother changing clothes, knowing that he would have to head over to the Meade Hall for dinner. When he walked back downstairs, Toothless was nowhere to be found.

"Bud? Where did you go?" Guessing that Toothless had already left for dinner, Hiccup opened the door, shivering as the cold rain drenched him yet again. The sky had considerably darkened, and not a soul could be seen outside.

"Odin, is it too much to ask for an okay birthday for once? Not saying that this morning wasn't nice, but the day has steadily gotten worse." Hiccup sighed, and then let out a yelp as his prosthetic foot snagged on a rock. He fell to the ground, and didn't bothering moving. Tears poured down the Viking's face and he contemplated just going back home, where he wouldn't have to deal with everything.

 **-Line Break-**

Unbeknownst to Hiccup, Astrid had led Toothless away to the Great Hall by tempting him with some fish. The teenagers had convinced everyone to hide in there until Hiccup arrived for dinner. She smiled, knowing that her plan couldn't fail.

The door to the Great Hall creaked open, and a small, battered figure practically limped in.

"Happy Birthday!"

 **-Line Break-**

Hiccup was a mess by the time he'd reached the Great Hall. His leg was hurting from the prosthetic. He'd scraped his knees the second time he fell, and his elbows the third. Tears still occasionally leaked from his eyelids. Hiccup sighed for the umpteenth time as he pushed the heavy wooden door open.

"Happy Birthday!" Everyone shouted, causing Hiccup to jump out of his skin. He looked up to see every single villager packed in the hall, and nearly all of the dragons as well.

"W-what is this?" Hiccup stuttered, unsure of what was going on, and still a bit shy in front of everyone.

Astrid pushed her way through the crowd and gave Hiccup a hug, "Happy Birthday, Hiccup!" She pulled away and noticed the state he was in. Hiccup was completely covered in mud and she could see the remnants of tears on his face. Pushing away the sadness she felt, Astrid led him over to a table where all of the other teens were sitting.

The birthday boy sat down, still not processing everything, "Guys. W-what's going on?"

Snotlout just laughed, "Trust you, the weirdest kid, to be born on the weirdest day of the year." **(Credit to Cressida Cowell :P)**

"Sorry we didn't realize it earlier, Hiccup," Fishlegs added.

"I-I don't understand…" Boisterous laughter resounded throughout the hall. The sound belonged to Stoick the Vast, who walked over to his son, a smile on his face.

"Happy Birthday, Son." Hiccup could barely manage a 'thank you' as he finally understood what was happening. They all wanted to celebrate _his_ birthday. Even his dad was there.

"We got something for you," Astrid said, setting a box in front of Hiccup. He slowly opened the box, curious as to what was inside.

The box contained several rough sketches and blueprints. _His_ sketches and blueprints. "What?"

Astrid explained it to him, "With permission from the chief, we have decided to help you put several of your plans into action." She grabbed the papers, listing what each one was. "Custom stables, all-you-can-eat feeding stations, a full service dragon wash, top-of-the-line fire prevention, and… a few things I'm not sure of."

"Thank you! This is so amazing!" Hiccup grabbed the papers from her and spread them out on the table. He pulled out his sketchbook and charcoal from inside his vest, pulling out more up-to-date designs for a few of the ideas.

Hiccup looked at the two blueprints Astrid was unsure of, and explained the first, "So this one is a sword that can stay on fire without burning up. I was thinking that coating it with Monstrous Nightmare would preserve it. And then there could be a little compartment that could release Zippleback gas and part of the hilt could have the ability to ignite it and…"

Snotlout cut him off, "What about the other one?" He, as well as everyone else, was shocked that Hiccup had such a crazy idea, but no one questioned him.

Hiccup turned his attention to the other idea and gasped, "You found it! Oh Thor, all of my other sketches for this got ruined earlier, and I thought I was going to have to dig through everything for this. Yes!" He fist pumped the air and quickly opened his sketchbook to a new page, copying the blueprint with quick, precise strokes.

"What is it?" Everyone practically shouted at Hiccup.

He jumped, "Sorry, um… earlier I fixed Toothless's tail so that he could glide without my help. The thing is, he can't take off with it in that position. Once I fix this up a bit, I am hoping to be able to fly next to Toothless."

Everyone was silent. Hiccup had definitely lost his marbles, "There's no way…" Fishlegs started.

"Hear me out on this," Hiccup turned the page in his sketchbook. "If Toothless and I start up high in the air and I jump off of him like I would when I freefall…"

" _What?_ " Stoick shouted.

Hiccup ignored him, "If I have leather attached to my arms and legs and then pull the flaps open, I could probably glide with the wing-like structures. I'm not exactly sure how they would stay on. I know! I could make a whole new set of armor." Hiccup rattled on, quickly filling several pages of his sketchbook with ideas. He completely forgot about his surroundings as he concentrated on solving the problem.

No one knew what to do, for they'd never seen Hiccup like this before. Who knew he could come up with so many ideas like this? Gobber just laughed, and shut Hiccup's sketchbook, getting his attention. "Ye can do that later, Hiccup. Right now ye need to celebrate."

Hiccup suddenly remembered where he was, and blushed, "Sorry, I guess I got carried away. Everyone laughed.

 **-Line Break-**

Hiccup had never felt so good in his life, everyone actually liked being around him. One thing was missing, however, and the young Viking knew this.

"Where's Toothless?" After a few moments, the Night Fury jumped down from the rafters, landing next to his best friend. He gave Hiccup another Toothless grin and wrapped his paws around Hiccup, trying to give him a hug. Everyone laughed at the unholy offspring of lightning and death's antics.

"Thanks bud. Happy Birthday to you too."


	4. The Shield of Sarcasm

**AN: In this story, Hiccup's mom was not taken away when he was only a baby. I doubt he would be this sad if his mother died so early. He didn't even get to know her. She was still taken away by Cloudjumper, but when Hiccup was about 6.**

How To Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 4: The Shield of Sarcasm

Hiccup didn't want to leave his house. It was the anniversary of his mother's death, and he didn't want to be around anyone. He was still getting used to the idea of having friends, and often had to get away and have some alone time where he could just relax.

Today was not one of those days, for he had a lesson to teach. Hiccup sighed, pushing Toothless's wings out of the way and strapping on his prosthetic leg. After a small meal, Hiccup pushed open the door and slowly made his way to the ring with Toothless in tow.

People constantly greeted the small Viking, but he'd never realized how often they did until now. He wasn't in the mood to chat, but tried to at least smile at everyone, no matter how hard it was. Gods, he missed her. No matter what the situation, Hiccup's mom managed to keep a smile on her face.

After finally escaping the swarm of Vikings, Hiccup relaxed, only to tense up again as the rest of the teens caught up to him.

"Hey Hiccup!" Fishlegs said.

He sighed as they all entered the ring and replied, "Hi, Fishlegs."

"Dude, you don't sound too happy," Tuffnut said while wrestling with his sister.

"I'm just peachy, Tuff." He smiled, but it probably ended up looking like a grimace.

The male twin paused, trying to decipher what Hiccup just said, "…Was that sarcasm?"

"No, it was Greek," The Night Fury's rider rolled his eyes. "Let's just get started guys. If you all want, we can go flying, maybe review some formations."

Snotlout was about to object, but Astrid punched him in the shoulder, "Just go with it. Hiccup seems a little off right now."

 **-Line Break-**

After reviewing the last formation, Hiccup had Toothless slow down, and the duo glided along slowly in the back.

Snotlout was the first to notice this and turned around to face him, "You're Night Fury is pretty slow today, Hiccup. In fact, I've never seen him fly very fast. Are the tales of his speed just a lie?"

Hiccup gave Snotlout a bored look, "I'm not in the mood. And for your information, I'd rather not have to worry about you trying to catch up to us every five seconds."

"Then why did Hookfang and I beat you during Thawfest?"

"I didn't feel like wasting any energy on your petty competition. If you don't stop talking, I might jump off of Toothless just to get away from your face."

The other rider's laughed at Hiccup's comment, causing Snotlout to become flustered, "I doubt Toothless would be fast enough to save you from dying."

Hiccup, already being in a bad mood, simply smiled at Snotlout before sliding off of Toothless, plummeting toward the ocean.

Instantly, everyone cried out in fear, worried that Hiccup would actually die. Toothless laughed at them, then tucked in his wings and quickly caught up to Hiccup. Just before coming in contact with the water's surface, Hiccup grabbed on to the saddle. The two quickly leveled out, their speed creating a huge wake. Hiccup laughed, letting go of his emotions momentarily, and changed the position of Toothless's tail.

The pair shot straight up into the air, right in the midst of the other dragons and startling the teens. After dropping back down to their height, the Night Fury's wings leveled out, and the two resumed their gliding like nothing had ever happened.

"Hiccup!" everyone yelled at him.

"What? I freefall all the time."

"You could have died!" Fishlegs said.

"But I didn't." He smirked.

"Dude! That was awesome!" Tuffnut shouted.

"Why thank you," After locking Toothless's tail, he leaned all the way back in the saddle, staring up at the clouds. Hiccup didn't take comfort in seeing them for once. The last time he saw his mom was when she was taken by the dragon, and he watched it fly away with her until they disappeared into the clouds.

After several silent minutes, Snotlout spoke up, "You know, I thought you were lying about jumping off of your dragon, Hiccup."

"I never lie," was his quick-witted response, "I just occasionally write fiction with my mouth."

"What is up with you today?" Astrid commented. Sure, Hiccup could be sarcastic at times, but never quite so often.

Hiccup huffed, frustrated with being questioned so much. Didn't they know what day it was? "It's nothing. The lesson's over early today."

Before anyone could object, Toothless turned around, and the duo flew away at a speed none could rival.

 **-Line Break-**

Due to dragon training ending early, the teens decided to try and beat the crowd to lunch. As they passed the Haddock household, the door burst open. Hiccup ran out with Stoick right behind him.

"Son, it's been ten years! You need to get over it," the chief shouted to the retreating figure.

He halted, turning around to face his dad with a heartbroken look that none of the teens had never seen before. His voice cracked slightly as he spoke, "How can you say that? Don't you feel anything?"

"All I'm saying is that you can't let it cloud your mind. A chief can't let personal problems slow him down."

Tears welled in Hiccup's eyes, but he pushed them away and quickly retorted, "Yeah. It's not like there's anything more important than ordering people around all day. I totally understand." He whistled for Toothless, who dropped from the roof of their house, and they were gone in an instant.

 **-Line Break-**

The five teenagers sat at their usual table in the Great Hall, having just finished their lunch.

"We need to find out what's going on with Hiccup," Astrid stated bluntly. "He's been pretty rude today and something is definitely wrong."

"Isn't it weird that he uses sarcasm in situations like this?" Fishlegs said, "I mean, during that one raid before dragon training, when his dad yelled at him for messing up, he just made a few witty comments and brushed it off like it was nothing."

"Yeah, and whenever we picked on him, he always had a comeback, even if we just hurt him more for saying it," Ruffnut added.

"Maybe he wanted to hide how he was feeling? Like when we all tried Astrid's yaknog and didn't like it. We told her it was great so she wouldn't get upset," Tuffnut received a punch from Astrid.

"You know, he's probably right," Fishlegs told Astrid, trying to get her to stop hurting the male twin, "He's probably upset about something and doesn't want to let anyone know."

Astrid sat back down, suddenly having an epiphany, "He never had anyone to talk to before, and he most likely feels the same way now. We have to find him!"

 **-Line Break-**

While flying normally felt relaxing to Hiccup, he didn't seem to feel its calming effects at the moment. All he could think about was his mother. He couldn't believe what his father had said about her death. It's like he didn't even care, just like he didn't care about Hiccup before he killed the Red Death.

After landing in the cove, Hiccup let out a frustrated yell, which startled Toothless. The dragon whined and nuzzled Hiccup, trying to comfort him. What Hiccup didn't know was that his yell attracted the attention of the others who were out looking for him.

Said group of teenagers had been walking toward the cove, unsure if Hiccup was actually there or not. His yell startled them, for the small Viking was normally pretty quiet. They ran toward the cove, wondering if he was injured. The group came to a halt in the ground entrance to the clearing, and stayed hidden.

"I'm sorry Toothless, I'm just not feeling too good today," Hiccup said, sitting down next to the dragon. Toothless warbled sadly and nudged Hiccup as if he were asking the young human to tell him what was wrong.

He answered, "Exactly ten years ago, there was a dragon raid. I had run outside, wanting to see a dragon. I thought that the dragons weren't evil even as a child, and I wanted to befriend one. There was this orange dragon with four wings, and I played with him for a bit. My mom ran over to me, fearing that the dragon was hurting me, but stopped once she saw what was going on. The dragon looked at her, and accidentally scratched me, giving me this scar on my chin," he pointed to it before continuing.

"My dad saw this and tried to attack the dragon. It grabbed my mom and flew away with her in its grip." Tears spilled from his eyes. "After that, everything started falling apart. I'm pretty sure my dad blamed me for her death, and he started to ignore me. The other kids started picking on me and stopped being my friend when they realized how weird I was. I sometimes wished that the dragon had taken me as well on that day."

Hiccup hugged Toothless, who gave him a small lick in return. "I wish you could have met my mom, Toothless. I think you two would have become friends."

Snotlout moved slightly and ended up stepping on a branch, the snap drawing the Hiccup's attention to the entrance. "Who's there?"

The teens slowly entered the cove one by one, many of them feeling a bit embarrassed for being caught spying on him.

"Hey, Hiccup," Astrid said. "Sorry about eavesdropping, we just wanted to see if you were okay." She could see his walls begin to return and before he could retort, she said, "Don't even bother with something sarcastic.

Hiccup sighed and averted his attention to Toothless, scratching him under the chin, "I'm sorry for being rude today guys, it's not a good day for me."

"We know," Fishlegs said, "We can leave you alone if you'd like."

"No, that's alright. I don't really mind if you guys are here. You might as well join us." As the teens sat down, Hiccup started to feel a bit chilly and had Toothless light a small fire.

They all stared at the fire in silence, unsure of what to say. Astrid suddenly remembered something, "You know, Hiccup, your mom was best friends with my mom. They used to hang out all of the time while we played together. I don't remember much, but your mom was really nice."

Hiccup smiled, "Yeah I remember that. You called her Aunt Valka once I think." He let out a small laugh, reminiscing.

Toothless nudged Hiccup, and the young Viking knew exactly what he wanted, "No, I didn't bring any fish with me." The dragon frowned and flicked a pebble at Hiccup's head.

"Oh, what? Do you want an apology? Is that why you're pouting, big baby boo?" Toothless grumbled in replied and turned away from Hiccup, pouting just like he said.

"I can't believe you just called a _Night Fury_ 'big baby boo!'" Snotlout said before bursting into laughter like everyone else. Toothless whined and flopped on the ground, mad that he was being mocked. He wished that he could be the alpha dragon and rule everyone one day. Then he'd see who was laughing.

After everyone had calmed down, Hiccup spoke, "Thanks for coming out here to see me guys. It's made me feel a lot better."

Astrid hugged him, "That's what friends are for."

After a few moments she pulled away and Hiccup spoke, "I don't think you guys will believe me, but my mom might still be alive."

Snotlout replied, "Are you kidding? She was taken by a dragon."

"Just here me out on this. The dragon never hurt me or my mom, aside from accidentally scratching me. I think that he might have thought my dad was trying to attack my mom, so he panicked and grabbed her. She could still be out there somewhere, maybe riding a dragon of her own."


	5. The Dragon Whisperer's Sword

**AN: Does anyone know how old Camicazi was in How to Speak Dragonese? Was she the same age as Hiccup or younger? I lost my book and it doesn't say anything about her age online. (This might have to do with the next chapter *wink wink*)**

How to Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 5: The Dragon Whisperer's Sword

 _(Italics = Dragonese)_

It was a relatively peaceful day on Berk, except for the dragon trainers. Their lesson was being held in its usual place, the Arena, but it was chaotic. The twins and their dragon heads wouldn't stop fighting and Snotlout had already been set on fire three times by Hookfang.

Hiccup tried almost everything to get them to stop, but nothing was successful. He had one last thing to try, but it was forbidden. When Hiccup was younger, he spent a lot of time in the forest with Terrible Terrors. He spent so much time around them that he learned to speak Dragonese, a language that no Viking should know. He kept it a secret from everyone, only using it when dragons were his only company.

The one-legged Viking made sure no one was looking before gesturing for the Barf and Belch to lower so he could talk to them. He whispered, " _Could you guys try and stop the twins from fighting? I have a few extra fish with your names on them."_

The dragon heads grinned, and Barf responded, " _Of courssse we will, but-"_

" _No eelssss,"_ Belch finished with a hiss.

" _I promise."_ Hiccup responded before heading over to Hookfang, who had just set Snotlout on fire again.

" _Hookfang,"_ He whispered, " _Could you please get along with Snotlout somewhat? I'll give you a large, delicious Icelandic cod."_

Hookfang looked at Hiccup, contemplating the offer, " _Make it two and we have a deal."_

" _Alright, two it is."_ Hiccup smiled before returning to his own dragon. He watched as the twins were pulled apart by their dragon, and Hookfang whacked Snotlout on the head once more before letting him get on the saddle.

What Hiccup didn't know was that Astrid and Fishlegs saw him whisper to the dragons. They didn't know he was speaking Dragonese, luckily.

Once everyone settled down and was ready for the lesson, Astrid questioned him, "What did you just do, Hiccup?"

"Yeah," Fishlegs agreed, "It's like you're some sort of Dragon Whisperer or something."

Hiccup laughed nervously, "It's not that important. Let's just get started."

 **-Line Break-**

The lesson ended and Hiccup sighed in relief. After giving away the fish he promised, (and letting the greedy Night Fury have his share) they all left the Dragon Arena.

"Hey Hiccup," Astrid said, "Do you want to join us for dinner?"

"No thanks, I'm good. I was thinking about heading to the forge to finish a project anyways," Hiccup smiled before leaving the group.

When they were out of earshot, Toothless said, " _You should just tell your friends about your ability to speak our language."_

Hiccup sighed, " _I can't. Vikings aren't supposed to know how to speak Dragonese. It's forbidden."_

The duo reached the forge. Hiccup went inside while Toothless ran off to get some lunch. Upon entering his workroom, Hiccup picked up the small device he'd been working on. It was almost done, he just needed to tweak a few things and ask a few dragons for help.

 **-Line Break-**

The next day, Hiccup entered the Dragon Arena looking exhausted. He had pulled another all-nighter in the forge. He managed to build a model of armor he wanted to create and finished what he hoped would be a sword, aside from getting the dragons to help.

The twins and Snotlout were messing around, and the other teens weren't there yet. Hiccup used this opportunity to talk to Barf, Belch, and Hookfang, who were chatting with each other.

" _Hey guys,"_ he said, _"I need your help with a project I've been working on."_

" _Well you did give us fish yesterday,"_ Hookfang said.

Hiccup showed them his new sword and little capsules that could go in it. _"Barf I need you to fill these containers with your gas. And Hookfang, your saliva helps you light yourself on fire, right?"_

" _Indeed, it does,"_ Hookfang said while the Zippleback fulfilled Hiccup's request.

" _Can you lick this for me?"_ Hiccup pushed a button that caused a blade to shoot out of the contraption. _"It's not sharp."_

" _Name your new sword 'Inferno' and we have a deal."_ Hookfang replied while coating the sword in saliva.

" _You've got it. Thank you guys so much for helping me."_

" _Hiccup,"_ Toothless dropped from the top of the ring as the Viking was putting his little invention away, _"The fat one and your mate are here."_

" _She's not my mate!"_ Hiccup whispered to Toothless angrily. The three dragons laughed.

" _You have a funny human, Toothlesssssss,"_ Belch said before they walked away and grabbed the twins.

Hiccup sighed. Dragons just don't understand.

 **-Line Break-**

After dragon training, everyone went to the Great Hall for food. Everyone except Hiccup, who practically ran to the forge, excited to test out his new weapon.

Hiccup was going to tell Gobber about his invention, but the blacksmith wasn't there. The young Viking figured that his mentor must have gone to eat.

Hiccup was about to pull out his sword and test it when he felt the cold tip of a dagger against his throat.

"Don't move."

 **-Line Break-**

While the villagers and most of the tamed dragons were in the Great Hall eating, the doors burst open. An Outcast by the name of Savage stood in the entrance.

"Attention!" he said, "We have the Dragon Conqueror as a hostage. If all of you are not weaponless and outside your arena within the next few minutes, with your dragons in the ring, we will kill him and attack all of you with our new dragon army." On that note, he left.

The doors shut with a loud thud, breaking the trance that had fallen over the Berkians. Chaos ensued and only the loud voice of the Chief got their attention, "Everyone! We must do what he said. All we can do is that pray to the gods in the hopes that they'll protect us."

 **-Line Break-**

Hiccup watched as Vikings crowded around the ring to witness his execution. Their dragons all entered the ring and stood around the outer edge. He saw his friends and father break through the crowd to make sure he was alright. Hiccup wanted to tell them something, but Alvin pressed the knife even closer to his neck.

"Don't say a word unless you want your Night Fury to die." The ruler of the Outcasts turned Hiccup so he could see Toothless being dragged in the entrance by at least twenty men. Ropes had been wrapped around the deadly dragon, but that didn't stop him from putting up a fight.

He was turned back around as Alvin spoke, "People of Berk! We recently learned that your precious Dragon Conqueror has been keeping secrets. The last time he was on my island, I caught the lad talking to his dragon. He wasn't speaking our language, but the forbidden language, Dragonese!"

Hiccup's secret had been presented to the entire village, yet the only reactions he noticed were those of his father and his friends. Stoick's normally stoic face was full of confusion and disbelief. He couldn't believe that his son would do such a thing. While the teenagers were confused as well, to Hiccup it looked like they felt he had betrayed them. He wished he could have told the group sooner, instead of having them find out this way.

Hiccup was forced to turn his attention back to Alvin as he spoke, "The little deceiver here has a choice. He can either tell all of the dragons to obey the Outcasts, or he can watch his dragon and friends be killed before he and the rest of you meet the same fate!"

The Outcasts in attendance all laughed. The knife was removed from Hiccup's throat so he could speak. Hiccup hesitated, then spoke to the dragons surrounding him in their forbidden language.

" _My friends, do not join the Outcasts. Wait for my signal and then help me defeat them!"_

The dragons all gave him some form of agreement, yet Hiccup could not tell which dragon said what. He was more focused on the shocked Vikings outside the Dragon Arena. Particularly his friends, who stared at him like he was a completely different person.

Hiccup pushed back his feelings of doubt, and he turned to face Alvin, speaking in a surprisingly strong voice, "I did what you told me. All of the dragons here agreed to do what I said."

He watched Alvin grin, and quietly pulled his secret weapon out, holding it behind his back. Hiccup waited for the right moment and sprung into action, praying his invention would work. Hiccup pushed a button and ran right at Alvin the Treacherous, Zippleback gas spraying out behind him.

The Outcast swiped at Hiccup, who quickly dodged and circled the man. He let go of the button and slid his finger across another part of the hilt, creating a spark. The gas exploded, just like a Zippleback's would.

Smoke filled the Arena and yelling could be heard from Vikings and Outcasts alike. When it finally dispersed, Hiccup ran at Alvin yet again, this time clicking a button that turned the device into a sword. A flaming sword. Alvin drew his sword to block it, and sparks flew everywhere. Hiccup looked into the Outcasts eyes and was surprised to find fear within them.

The treacherous man yelped as his sword grew incredibly hot. He dropped the now useless weapon and yelled at the Dragon Conqueror, "What kind of witchcraft is this?"

Hiccup pointed the flaming sword at Alvin, and answered a bit nonchalantly, "Oh, it's just my new sword, Inferno."

The other Outcasts finally began to snap out of their stupor, and they made their way to Hiccup, knowing he couldn't fight them all.

Hiccup saw this, and yelled out to the dragons, " _Fight!"_

The dragons quickly overwhelmed the Outcasts, and quickly pinned them all. Stormfly and Meatlug held down Alvin as Hiccup ran to Toothless. He effortlessly cut through the ropes with his flaming sword, and hopped on Toothless. They flew out of the Arena and landed on the chains covering the top.

The hero looked up to find every single Viking staring at him, slack-jawed. Toothless simply chuckled and said to Hiccup, " _Those humans are going to catch nanodragons if they keep their mouths open any longer."_

Hiccup held back a laugh as they made their way to his father, "Before you say anything, I'm sorry. Right now we have bigger problems, like the large number of Outcasts on our island."

Stoick snapped out of it enough to answer, "Right. Priorities."

 **-Line Break-**

While the Outcasts were being taken care of, the teens walked over to Hiccup, who had just dismounted.

Tuffnut was the first one to speak up, "Dude what was that back there? You were like, so cool!"

Pretty soon all of the teens were speaking at once. Hiccup couldn't tell what any of them were saying. He cut them off by speaking, "Guys, you're not upset?"

"What are you talking about?" Snotlout responded.

"I didn't tell any of you about being able to speak Dragonese."

"Well, we were mad at first," Astrid said, "But then we realized if you kept it a secret from your father as well, then you must have had a good reason."

Hiccup smiled, but it quickly faded once he realized something, "Oh gods. He's probably going to exile me for knowing how to speak with dragons."

"Hiccup," Astrid patted him on the shoulder, "I don't think you realize this, but it was forbidden when we _killed_ dragons. Now that the war is over, it's probably fine for you to talk to them. They are our friends after all."

"You know," Snotlout said, "If I become chief instead of you, you can always become a dragon translator."

They all laughed and Hiccup said, "I'll keep that in mind."

 **AN: Again if any of you know how old Camicazi was in How to Speak Dragonese compared to Hiccup, please let me know. The next chapter can't be finished unless I learn what it is. I hope you enjoyed! :)**


	6. Curiosity

**AN: Here it is! I finally finished a new chapter. This actually isn't the chapter I was planning to make. I was in the middle of the one about Camicazi, but then I got a different idea that I finished quickly. I don't know when I'll post the other one, it will probably happen once I get in the mood to complete it. I need more ideas though, so let me know if you have any! Also, I know there is a Race to the Edge episode about Hiccup's flight suit, but I thought I would make my own version. I have a few other things to say, but go ahead and enjoy the chapter and I'll let you know at the end. :)**

How to Understand a Hiccup

Chapter 6: Plans Unfold

"Alright guys!" Hiccup said after everyone landed in the Training Ring. "That's all for today, you're more than welcome to keep training, but I've got stuff to do. I'll see you later." He and Toothless were gone in an instant, much to the confusion of the remaining riders.

A few moments later, Snotlout said, "Do you guys ever wonder what Hiccup does when we're not around?"

"Yeah…" Astrid said, deep in thought. Suddenly, a lightbulb went off in her head. "We should figure out what Hiccup's up to! When you think about it, we hardly know anything about him aside from his love for dragons."

"That sounds boring," Ruffnut complained. Astrid was quick to respond, a plan already forming in her mind.

"Think of it as a top-secret mission. We stick together and observe Hiccup for the day. If Hiccup catches on to us, the mission is a failure. Got it?"

Everyone quickly agreed, and Astrid's plan began to unfold.

 **-Line Break-**

Several minutes later, the teens found Hiccup in the forge. The weather was pretty mild, so Gobber left the windows open, making it easy for them to look in. Toothless could be found in the corner napping by the fire, while Hiccup was running all over the place. He was somehow conversing with Gobber at the same time.

"I'm tellin' ya Hiccup, that little plan of yours isn't gonna work." Gobber said.

Hiccup scoffed, "Since when do my plans fail?"

"Well… there was that one time when ya ended up burnin' part o' your dad's beard. Then ya burnt the forge. Don't forget about that bola-launcher of yours."

"The last one didn't fail!"

"Ya knocked out a Viking, and knocked your Night Fury out of the sky."

"It did break… and damage my best friend," Hiccup glanced at Toothless's prosthetic in remorse. "But it didn't fail! Back then we were killing dragons anyways. I'd say it only partially failed."

"Whatever, fishbone."

Hiccup stopped what he was doing to look at Gobber, "I am not a fishbone anymore! When are you going to stop calling me that, Meathead?"

"When you stop calling me Meathead, toothpick. Anyways…" He said to avoid listening to a rant from Hiccup about his 'raw Vikingness.' "The point is that this plan of yours isn't going to work. Humans aren't meant to fly."

Hiccup didn't let Gobber's words deter him however. A smirk that would rival Loki's appeared on his face as he said, "Just you wait Gobber. I'll be flying next to Toothless in no time."

While the teens processed what Hiccup just said, they almost missed him leave the forge. They watched him run into his house, a bundle in his hands. Toothless stayed outside, so they assumed he wouldn't be in there for very long. The group of riders looked at each other, all thinking similar things.

"What on Midgard is Hiccup planning?" Astrid whispered.

"I don't know, but it sounds dangerous!" Tuffnut said excitedly before being shushed by the others.

Fishlegs chipped in, "Do you guys really think we should be doing this? I mean it is an invasion of his privacy."

"Of course we should, Fishface. Are you too much of a chicken to see what Hiccup's up to?" Snotlout challenged.

"No! I-"

"Guys!" Astrid interrupted. "Now is not the time." Astrid was right. The door to the Haddock household opened and Hiccup tumbled out. Toothless quickly caught him and the teen held on to him for support. They saw him say something to Toothless as he fiddled with his prosthetic. To them, Hiccup appeared to be wearing a strange outfit, but it was hard to tell from that distance.

Astrid motioned for the riders to follow her. They casually walked toward Hiccup, and Astrid called out to him. "Hiccup!"

He looked up, slightly startled from their presence, "H-hey! Wh-what are you guys doing here?"

"Doesn't matter," Astrid quickly said. "What on Midgard are you wearing?"

Hiccup was covered head-to-toe in intricately designed leather armor. An intimidating helmet rested under his arm. He laughed awkwardly and said, "Oh… It's nothing really. Anyways, I gotta go!" He flipped something on his new prosthetic that switched his foot before hopping on Toothless and vanishing.

After he left, again, Tuffnut exclaimed, "Hiccup has three feet!"

Astrid ignored him and turned to the others, "We have to find him!"

 **-Line Break-**

It took the group of dragon riders almost an hour before they found Hiccup. They found him and Toothless napping on a cliff on the edge of Berk. When the duo stirred, they quickly hid in the brush nearby. They watched as Hiccup got up and nudged Toothless. The dragon grumbled and batted a paw at him.

"C'mon, bud. I thought you were so excited to go flying." At the last word, Toothless's ears perked up, and he quickly woke up, ready to fly. Hiccup adjusted the harness and checked to make sure Toothless's tail before they took off. The teens watched the duo perform seemingly impossible tricks, stepping out of the brush for better visibility.

After a few more tricks, the two were gliding high in the sky, barely visible to the group on the cliff. All of a sudden, two separate figures could be seen shooting toward the ground. Several of the Vikings gasped when they realized Hiccup and Toothless were falling. The thing that surprised them more was that Hiccup pulled on something on his armor, and quickly took to the air like Toothless.

The two were gliding side by side, and right toward the cliff where the teens stood. They backed up in fear as Toothless grabbed Hiccup before landing roughly on the ground. All was quiet, until Hiccup popped up from under Toothless's wing and yelled, "It worked! Did anyone see that?"

Fishlegs quietly said, "We did." He alerted Hiccup to their presence.

"What are you guys doing here? Did you follow me?" He said as he pulled his helmet off and folded the wings up.

Astrid tried to explain while still getting over the fact that Hiccup was flying, "Well… you left in quite a hurry. We were wondering what you were up to. So we followed you here."

To her surprise, Hiccup laughed hysterically. No one knew what to do, but he quickly calmed down and said, "And people say curiosity is going to get me killed!"

"Well, you did almost die, Hiccup," Snotlout said, trying to hide his astonishment.

"Whatever, I knew Toothless would catch me if it didn't work. Isn't that right bud?" Toothless growled and knocked Hiccup over with his tail, much to the amusement of everyone else.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm hungry," Tuffnut said after they calmed down. Everyone agreed, and set out towards the Mead Hall as the sun sank in the sky behind them.

 **AN: So, I have a few other ideas for stories to start, and I was wondering what you guys thought. One of the things I was considering was making a story with one-shots like this, but centered around Jack Frost and the guardians. My other main idea was making a 'Hiccup leaves Berk' story of my own, seeing how I love them so much. What do you think? Let me know about any other ideas for one-shots or stories too! Thanks, and I hope you enjoyed!**


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